Method of and apparatus for making rontgen projections



May'7, 1935. v E. POHLOI 2,000,497

METHOD OF AND APPARATUS FOR MAKING RONTGEN PROJECTIONS Filed Nov. 28, 1928 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 2! 25 25 g flrfil i/ 376 ig mil 1 29 25 6 E. POHL 2,000,497

May 7, 1935.

METHOD OF AND APPARATUS FOR MAKING RONTGEN PROJECTiONS 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Nov. 28, 1928 Patented May 7, 1935 MET-Hon or AND APPARATUS FoR MAKlNG RONTGEN PROJECTIONS Ernst Pohl, Kiel, Germany Application November 28,.1928, Serial.N0. 322,496 I In Germany November 29,1927 7 1 Claim. (01. 250-44).

My invention relates to improvem'entsin the method-of andrapparatus for making Rontgen. projections, and :the object of the improvements is toprovide a method by means of which :a section of a body can be projected on "the screen or:a.-sensitizedplate,:while1the parts of the body located outsidethe said plane are not made visible :on thescreenorsensitized .plate. With this object :in view my invention. consists in moving the Riintgen tube, the screen or ssensitizedplate and the body relatively to each other while making the projection in such a way that similar raysalwaysipass through :the :same. :ipoints of the section .and the screen or plate, while :all {the other-, partsof the body .the said rays massthrough pointsiof the said gparts. Hlhereforewhen moving theksaid in einbers at' suificiently high velocity, each rayproduces only the image of the point continuously met thereby =on the .screen or plate, while theima s-of the vother points which are produced in rapid succession can not be perceived; When taking Rontgen photos the "velocity of .themovementican;beecomparatlvely small, while .;for--.the purpose ofdirectly observing the 'imagepnthe screen .the velocity vmust -be so high that the .moving images of the .points are not perceived bytheeye. Y Y .In the preferred embodiment of the invention I mount the tube, :the screen -or ,plate, and the support for the body so that the tube and the screen, ,perform corresponding .gyratory movements, the said parts being supported err-universallymounted rods. When-oscillating the-said rods through a ilarge angle, ,plastic images can be produced .on the screen.-- J

v In .the foregoing .I have stated thatizhe support of the .bodyis stationary, land that the tubeand the screen are oscillated. EButIit will-'be understood that the sameresultimay'be obtained when the'said parts are mountedso as to perform similararelative movements, and that for example the Rontgen tube may be stationary, while the body and the screen are oscillated.

For the purpose of explaining the invention severa1 examples embodying the same have been shown in the accompanying drawings in which the same reference characters have been used in all the views to indicate corresponding parts. In said drawings,

Fig. 1 is a perspective view showing an apparatus in which the support for the body is stationary and the Rontgen tube and the screen are movable,

Figs. 2 and 3 are detail views.

Fig. 4 is a diagrammatical perspective view illustrating the apparatus shown in Fig. 1, and

:Figs. 5 and'fi are similar diagrammati'cal views illustrating modifications, 1

Referring to Fig. :l, the object to be projected is placed'on atable l. Onopposite sides of :the said table :two brackets 2 :are :fixed which (are provided at their top 'ends with bearings 3. In the said "bearings. the ipivots 5 of two rods 4 disposed'at'opposite sides of the tableiare mounted. 9T0 :the rods 4 :pivots 6 are secured on which rods l are rockingly supported. The pivots -5 and 6 are disposed perpendicularly to eachother, and they provide a "universal suspension .for the rods There are four rods I which are parallel to one another and two of them are located at each side of the table. At their top ends the rods! are connected/by ball and socket joints 8 with a frame comprising four bars 9, ithe -said bars providing a support for 1a screen-5H) or the casing for :the sensitized plate. .At their bottom ends the rods 1 areyconnected'by ball and socket join'tsvll with a frame consisting of fourzbars. l2. Two bars l2 disposed at opposite sides-of the frameare provided with bearings 14 in which 25 carried by a vertical shaft =29. The bolt :24

is fixed in position by means of anut 24a, and after unscrewing the :said nutth'e sleeve =23 can be rocked 'for settingmthe' same at "different angles on the crankarm 25. hecrank arm 25:is made in two sections 2517 and 25a, the section 25b-bee ing formed with .a longitudinal slot 26,;and the section 2511. being provided with two bores 21. By means of screws 28 passed through the said bores and. the slot the sections 251) and 25a can be connected with each other so as to produce a crank arm of the desired length.

The vertical shaft 29 is rotatably mounted in a bearing 30, and it has a pulley 3| fixed thereto, on which a rope 32 is trained, the said rope being connected with a suitable driving mechanism (not shown).

The brackets 2 are mounted on blocks 33 secured to the sides of the table, and they are vertically adjustable in the said blocks. As shown, the brackets are formed with vertical slots M engaged by screws 34 carrying wing nuts 34a and secured to the blocks 33. Thus the pivots 6 can be adjusted in vertical direction. The brackets 2 are guided in vertical direction by means of lugs 33a. made integral with the blocks 33.

The length of the crank arm 25 and the inclination of the sleeve 23 relatively thereto is set so that the, central ray emitted from the Rontgen tube 20 intersects the axis of the shaft 29 in a point located in the plane of the pivots 6 and substantially at the middle of the rectangle provided by the said pivots. crank 25 the. said point ofintersection is not varied, and in the operation of the apparatus the plane including the pivots 6 remains substantially the same. Therefore in the gyratory movement of the system the central ray always passes through the same point of the said-plane. Further, the screen l and the Rontgen tube 20 always perform proportional movements, so that the said central ray emitted from the tube always passes through the same point of the screen. If therefore the plane of the pivots 6 is set by means of the brackets 2 so that it passes through a certain horizontal section of the body disposed on the table, a definite point of the said section is projected on the screen in the said point of intersection of the central ray and the screen, while all the other points of the body located above andbelow the said section and successively pas'sedby the central ray of the tube describing a cone are continuously altered, so thatthey can not produce an image on the screen; The same appliesto the other rays emitted from theRontgen tube. a

When changing the position of the plane of the pivots 6 in vertical direction'the rod 22 slides in the sleeve 23 of the crank 25. For each ver tical displacement of the plane the angular position of thesleeve relatively to the crank must be varied, in order that the point of intersection of the central ray and the axis of the shaft 29 is displaced accordingly. A change of the length of the crank arm 25 is not necessary for this purpose? The length of the crank arm is changed only if it is desired to enlarge or reduce the gyratcry movement of the tube and the screen. v a

The gyratory movement of the system, including the prismatic frame formed by the articulated rods 1, 9 and I2, is that of a conical pendulum, and by the said movement the box l9 containing the Ront'gen tube and secured to the inner ring l8 of the cardanic suspensionand the said Rontgen tube itself perform' a rocking movement relatively to the frame l2.

The operation is illustrated'in Fig. 4 with reference to a-single vertical planej In the said figure the numeral 20 indicates the point of emission of the Rontgen rays, H) is the screen, 35 the point of intersection of the central ray of When rotating the the Rontgen tube and the plane of the section of the body 38 which is to be projected, while the numerals 36 and 31 indicate two points of the sectional plane located symmetrically thereof. The points 35, 36, 31 are projected in the points 350., 36a, 31a of the screen, and the said points are not altered during the circular pendulum movement of the tube and the screen.

When moving the body 38 to be projected within its plane while the Rontgen tube 20 is stationary (Fig. 5), the screen or the plate I0 is moved parallel to the body a distance corresponding to the ratio of the distances between the tubeand the said plane and the screen.

In the modification shown in Fig. 6 the Rontgen tube 28 and the body 38 are moved parallel to each other at the ratio of the distances between the same and the screen, while the screen or plate i0 is stationary.

By my improved method inner parts of the body or foreign bodies can be approximately reproduced by placing photos one above the other successively made at different heights.

Where shutter for excluding secondary radia tion is provided the said shutter must be moved in such manner thatits partitions are always located in the direction of the rays.

The method described above is particularly designed for medical purposes. But I wish it to be understood that it may also be used for the purposeof examining other bodies or materials.

I claim: 7

.In an apparatus for controlling the direction of Rontgen ray projections, the combination of a support for the object to be projected, with-a prismatic frame comprising articulated members straddling said support, an image carrier mounted in the upper end of the, frame above said support, supports for the frame on opposite sides of the object support, pivotal connections between the frame and said supports with the pivots included in a plane parallel to the object support and to the image carrier, a gimbal mounted in the lower end of the frame, arod extending from the inner element of the gimbal and alined with the axis thereof, a'rotatable shaft mounted in a bearing with its axis normal to the center of the plane including the said pivotal connections, means for rotating the shaft, an arm fixed at one end on the shaft, a swivel connecting the other end of the arm with the rod extending from the gimbal, the rotationyof the shaft operating through the intervening mechanism to impart conical pendulation to the frame, and a casing enclosing a Rontgen tube and having an opening for the passage of a confined bundle of rays, said casing being mounted on theinner element of the gimbal so that the bundle of rays emanating from the opening will always be directed toward the image carrier.

' ERNST POHL. 

